Cube-E
Cube-E (The History of American Music in 3 E-Z Pieces) was the third live performance tour by The Residents, beginning in November 1987 and continuing until November 1990. A conceptual performance trilogy focusing on the group's recurring theme of the history of American music, Cube-E is comprised of various performance pieces the group had been working on since 1987 (including "Buckaroo Blues", "Black Barry", and a suite of tracks derived from the group's album of Elvis Presley covers The King & Eye). History Early performances Cube-E started life as a number of separate projects The Residents had been developing throughout the late 1980s. In 1987 they were commissioned by the German TV program Off Beat Night to create a 30 minute performance, for which they created "Buckaroo Blues" a piece focusing on popular western music from 1850 to 1950. The Residents premiered "Buckaroo Blues" at the 20th anniversary party for their record company Torso, before performing it on Off Beat in early 1988. In 1989, the group were invited to perform at the Serious Fun Festival at the Lincoln Centre. For this performance they built upon the "Buckaroo Blues" performance piece, adding a new second piece focusing on American black music, entitled "Black Barry". Tour By the time of the second performance The Residents had decided they wanted to take this show on the road, but it was still too short, so they added another 30 minute suite to the end of it, called "The Baby King", this time focusing on Elvis Presley, who the group believed to be the ultimate marriage of both black and western music, and also the end of true American music, with all bands since being more inspired by British music. With this final addition, the show became Cube-E (The History of American Music in 3 E-Z Pieces). In 1990 the group performed "Teddy Bear" and "From The Plains To Mexico" from the Cube-E tour on David Sanborn's Night Music. On the same program, Conway Twitty performed with The Residents as back-up dancers. Second tour Following the success of the show's initial run from 1989 to early 1990, The Residents began a second tour of Cube-E, continuing throughout 1990, but this was plagued by more complications than the first tour. A Cleveland performance had to be cancelled due to the venue owner filing for bankruptcy, and a fire was started at a show at the Beacon Theater in New York in November, when a speaker fell into the audience. This caused The Residents to end the tour and swear (not for the first time) to never tour again. Pieces in "Buckaroo Blues"]] Buckaroo Blues The first part of the Cube-E performance, "Buckaroo Blues", derives from a collection of poems and songs written by cowboys which had been discovered by The Residents. This collection inspired the group to develop their own versions of these songs, resulting in the creation of a 20 minute suite. For the live performance of "Buckaroo Blues", The Residents appeared in all-black outfits, featuring blue glow-in-the-dark buttons and mouths, oversized cowboy hats, and torches for eyes. The group dance and sing around a campfire, backlit by a set decorated with projected stars of various sizes. Setlist # From The Plains To Mexico # Theme From Buckaroo Blues # Stampede # Trail Dance # Bury Me Not # Cowboy Waltz # Saddle Sores # Theme From Buckaroo Blues (Reprise) in "Black Barry"]] Black Barry The second part of Cube-E, "Black Barry", is the only piece of the performance which was never recorded in the studio by the group. In "Black Barry", The Residents wear the same outfits as in "Buckaroo Blues", but now with white rags. Much of "Black Barry" features sequenced instrumentation but on the whole includes more live instruments than the other two parts of the performance. Setlist # The Gospel Truth # Shortnin' Bread # Black Barry # Forty-Four # Engine 44 # New Orleans # Voodoo Queen # What Am I Gonna Do? # Organism The Baby King The final part of Cube-E, "The Baby King", was also the final part of the performance to be developed by the group. Like their 1989 album The King & Eye, "The Baby King" focuses on Elvis Presley, or more specifically an Elvis impersonator, who is relating the history of Elvis to his grandchildren Shorty and Shirley. Setlist # Ober # The Baby King Part 1 # Don't Be Cruel # Heartbreak Hotel # A Fool Such As I # All Shook Up # The Baby King Part 2 # Devil In Disguise # Burning Love # Teddy Bear # Viva Las Vegas # The Baby King Part 3 # Love Me Tender # The Baby King Part 4 # Hound Dog # Out Performances First Leg: Buckaroo Blues * 18th November 1987 - 20th Anniversary Party for Boudisque, Amsterdam, Netherlands * March 15, 1988 - Tele 5 Studios, Grünwald, Germany Second Leg: Cube E * 21st July 1989 - Lincoln Center, New York City, New York * 22nd July 1989 - Lincoln Center, New York City, New York Third Leg * 21st September 1989 - Cowell Theater, San Francisco, California * 22nd September 1989 - Cowell Theater, San Francisco, California * 23rd September 1989 - Cowell Theater, San Francisco, California * 24th September 1989 - Cowell Theater, San Francisco, California * 13th October 1989 - Nancy Jazz Festival, Nancy, France * 14th October 1989 - Grenoble, France * 16th October 1989 - Theaterhaus, Stuttgart, Germany * 17th October 1989 - Tempodrom, Berlin, Germany * 18th October 1989 - Audimax, Hamburg, Germany * 19th October 1989 - Kurhaus, Wiesbaden, Germany * 21st October 1989 - San Giovanni Valdarno, Italy * 23rd October 1989 - Theaterfabrik Unterfoehring, Munich, Germany * 24th October 1989 - Festspielhaus, Recklinghousen, Germany * 25th October 1989 - L'Aerouef, Lille, France * 26th October 1989 - La Cigale, Paris, France * 27th October 1989 - Ancienne Belgique, Brussels, Belgium * 31st October 1989 - Pumpehuset, Copenhagen, Denmark * 1st November 1989 - Stora Salen, Lund, Sweden * 2nd November 1989 - Nya Vagen, Gothenburg, Sweden * 3rd November 1989 - Oslo Opera House, Oslo, Norway * 5th November 1989 - Saddler Wells, London, England * 7th November 1989 - Club Rodon, Athens, Greece * 8th November 1989 - Club Rodon, Athens, Greece * 9th November 1989 - The Cinerama, Tel Aviv, Israel * 11th November 1989 - Cankarjev Dom, Ljubljana, Yugoslavia * 12th November 1989 - Graz, Austria * 13th November 1989 - Bank Austria Zelt, Vienna, Austria Fourth Leg * 29th December 1989 - Cowell Theater, San Francisco, California * 30th December 1989 - Cowell Theater, San Francisco, California * 31st December 1989 - Cowell Theater ("Cube N.Y.E."), San Francisco, California * 5th January 1990 - Gould Hall, New York City, New York * 6th January 1990 - Gould Hall, New York City, New York * 7th January 1990 - Gould Hall, New York City, New York * 11th January 1990 - Gould Hall, New York City, New York * 12th January 1990 - Gould Hall, New York City, New York * 13th January 1990 - Gould Hall, New York City, New York * 14th January 1990 - Gould Hall, New York City, New York * 25th January 1990 - Japan American Theater, Los Angeles, California * 26th January 1990 - Japan American Theater, Los Angeles, California * 27th January 1990 - Japan American Theater, Los Angeles, California * 28th January 1990 - Japan American Theater, Los Angeles, California * 3rd February 1990 - Berklee Performance Center, Boston, Massachusetts * 7th February 1990 - Lisner Auditorium, Washington DC * 11th February 1990 - Barrymore Theater, Madison, Wisconsin * 13th February 1990 - Royal George Theater, Chicago, Illinois * 14th February 1990 - Royal George Theater, Chicago, Illinois * 15th February 1990 - Royal George Theater, Chicago, Illinois * 16th February 1990 - Royal George Theater, Chicago, Illinois * 17th February 1990 - Royal George Theater, Chicago, Illinois * 18th February 1990 - Royal George Theater, Chicago, Illinois * 6th March 1990 - Muziektheater, Amsterdam, Netherlands * 7th March 1990 - Robert Schumann Saal, Dusseldorf, Germany * 8th March 1990 - Munsterlandhall Kongressaal, Munster, Germany * 9th March 1990 - Bruckenforum, Bonn, Germany * 11th March 1990 - Sala Europa, Bologna, Italy * 13th March 1990 - Palace Theatre, Athens, Greece * 16th March 1990 - Teatro Fantarca, Bari, Italy * 17th March 1990 - Teatro Astra, Verona, Italy * 18th March 1990 - Teatro Cumunale, Pisa, Italy * 19th March 1990 - Cineteatro Ciack, Milan, Italy * 21st March 1990 - Muenchener Volkstheater, Munich, Germany * 22nd March 1990 - Muenchener Volkstheater, Munich, Germany * 23rd March 1990 - Konzerthaus, Karlsruhe, Germany * 25th March 1990 - Haus der Kultur, Berlin, Germany * 28th March 1990 - Teatro de la Alianza, Barcelona, Spain * 29th March 1990 - Arena Auditorium, Valencia, Spain Fifth Leg * 9th November 1990 - Le Spectrum, Montreal, Quebec, Canada * 10th November 1990 - Le Spectrum, Montreal, Quebec, Canada * 11th November 1990 - Music Hall, Toronto, Ontario, Canada * 14th November 1990 - State Theater, Minneapolis, Minnesota * 15th November 1990 - Barrymore Theater, Madison, Wisconsin * 16th November 1990 - Riviera Theater, Chicago, Illinois * 17th November 1990 - Riviera Theater, Chicago, Illinois * 19th November 1990 - Michigan Theater, Ann Arbor, Michigan * 21st November 1990 - South Hills Theater, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania * 23rd November 1990 - Beacon Theater, New York City, New York Legacy In 1991, The Residents were hired by Japanese computer company NEC to create a new live show, based around their album Freak Show, directed by Ty Roberts. Due to being in such short notice, the show re-used some costumes from Cube-E. Related releases * ''Stars & Hank Forever'' (1986) * For Elsie (1987) * From The Plains To Mexico (1989) * Buckaroo Blues (1989) * Buckaroo Blues & Black Barry (1989) * The King & Eye (1989) * Don't Be Cruel (1990) * Cube-E: Live In Holland (1990) * Liver Music (1990) * Daydream B-Liver (1991) * The King & Eye: RMX (2004) * Cube-E (2006) * Cube-E Dynasone 3EZ (2011) See also * Buckaroo Blues * The King & Eye External links and references * Cube-E at The Residents Historical * Cube-E at RZWeb Category:Cube-E‏ Category:Live shows‏‎ Category:The King & Eye‏ Category:Buckaroo Blues